Not only am I a Cubs fan, but I am also a really big fan of beer. I like all sorts of beer. I like the macro-brews that I grew up with, to some of the micro-brews that are popular today.

I like beer that is cheap, I like beer that is priced in the middle and I like beer that is expensive.

In general I just like beer.

Every week month I’ll name a wpbc beer o’ the week month, usually it’ll be something I am drinking.

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June 2009 wpbc beer o’ the month

New Glarus Spotted Cow

Spotted Cow is probably my favorite beers out there. I love the stuff. It’s very enjoyable to sit outside on a summer evening and toss back a few of these. If you pour the beer into a pint glass you will notice that it’s a little bit cloudy. According to the label the reason for this is they keep the yeast in the bottle to allow it to keep working. Whatever it is the result is a full bodied, great tasting, refreshing beer that will make you wish you could have more of it. Lot’s more.

Here’s how the folks from New Glarus describe Spotted Cow on the bottle:

Cask conditioned ale has been the popular choice among brews since long before prohibition. We continue this pioneer spirit with our Wisconsin farmhouse ale. Brewed with flaked barley and the finest Wisconsin malts. We even give a nod to our farmers with a little hint of corn.

Naturally cloudy we allow the yeast to remain in the bottle to enhance fullness of flavors, which cannot be duplicated otherwise.

Expect this ale to be fun, fruity and satisfying. You know you’re in Wisconsin when you see the Spotted Cow.

I know I’m in Wisconsin because the first thing I do is look for a store or a bar so I can get a quick fix.

The only issue that I have with this beer is I have to drive an hour and a half to get it. 10 years ago I could walk down to the convenience store in my Chicago neighborhood and pickup a six pack. Now I have to hop in the car and drive up to the Brat Stop for a sixer. Anyways, the popularity of their product has made it unnecessary to  distribute outside Wisconsin.

So cheers to the fine folks in New Glarus, WI. Recently they opened the doors to their new brewery. wpbc hopes to make a trip there later this summer for a tour and tasting!

Here is what beeradvocate had to say about the New Glarus Spotted Cow.

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April 21, 2009’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Goose Island Dead Goat Porter

I was tweeted about the release of the Dead Goat Porter release earlier this month. I wanted to stop by the Brew Pub on Clark St. on Opening Day, but a private party and a dumbass cover charge ran me down the street. So, I was down at the Clybourn Brew Pub on a rainy cold Sunday afternoon and tasted a few of these. Very nice! This is a mild, light bodied Porter that tastes good. It’s a great drink for a cold spring day just like today.I wasn’t eating, but I imagine this beer would go pretty well with a burger.

The Dead Goat Porter is worth a trip to one of the Goose Island Brew Pubs for a test drive. If you don’t like it, youll find something you enjoy.

Here is what beeradvocate had to say about the Dead Goat Porter.

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March 12, 2009’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Wexford Irish Cream Ale

Half the with this ale is pouring it. Thanks to the widget can Wexford pours, then cascades into an amber beer, with a beautiful creamy head. This ale is mildly sweet, mildly malty and mildly hoppy with a very smooth finish. Nothing stands out, but it is an enjoyable drink if you want to get a small taste of Ireland.

This beer is pretty mild and would be a good starter or crossover beer for those that want to leave the American macro beers behind this Patty’s day. I enjoyed the beer, it’s very drinkable and light.

Here is what beeradvocate had to say about Wexford.

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A quick second away from beer o’ the week to take a look at a preview of the upcoming movie Beer Wars which will be in theatres April 16th:

In honor of St. Paddy’s Day, March is IRISH BEER MONTH at wpbc beer o’ the week.

March 2, 2009’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Guinness

I don’t think you could begin Irish beer month any other way. Guinness is not only a fine tasting beer, it’s good for you!

Brewed at St. James Gate since before the dawn of America. One of the real challenges in America these days is finding a bar that knows how to properly pour a Guinness. When you find a place that does it right, you should probably just keep going back… Of course if you can’t find that place, you should probably take a trip across the pond to Dublin (Most will tell you it tastes better over there anyway!)

I love the ‘black stuff’ as V an I refer to it as. This stuff never gets old and yes there are more flavourful dark beers out there, but there is something so relaxing about a proper pint of Guinness. I need one now.

Here is what beeradvocate.com had to say about Guinness.

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February 20, 2009’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA

Funny, while I have had several of Dogfish Head’s seasonal brews I had never had the Delaware brewer’s ‘flagship’ beer until this week.

I actually stumpled into this beer by accident at a major chain restaurant. I was shocked they had this and decided to give it a whirl, instead of the typical macro brew. This is a fun IPA with a fruity/hoppy flavor. I think you can find this beer at most good beer stores and I think I have seen it at Trader Joe’s. For the price this is a very nice beer. Once you drink one you’ll want another.

Here is what beeradvocate.com had to say about .

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February 6, 2009’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Bell’s Hopslam Ale

There’s not alot to get excited about in the middle west in the months of January and February. The days are short, cold and winter really gets to be a drag at this point. Well Bell’s Brewery out of western Michigan has dones something to liven up this time of year. They release their Hopslam Ale on January 7th through sometime in February.

I happened upon a sixer this afternoon, so I picked it up and brought it home. Most of you who read this page regularly know that I appreciate cheap beer almost as well as the good stuff, so I was a bit hesitant to pay what I did for this beer ($14.99 for the sixer). When I got it home and opened the first bottle, and I can’t believe I am saying this, it was worth that amount. No doubt about it.

(Oog and pmayo I think you guys love hoppy, so I’ll be interested to hear your take on Hopslam.)  I’m a big fan of bitter. This stuff delivers an outstanding bitter. So you better like hoppy and bitter. Still, they throw a bit of honey into it so you have a beer that is bitter, big time hoppy with a touch of sweet. This stuff is FANTASTIC. I’m not much for talking about beer like I’m wine tasting, but even the aroma is enjoyable.

Alright, I’m a big fan even though this thing broke my depression beer budget. Thankfully it only comes out once a year, I can’t spend $15 on a sixer with regularity.If you can still find a six pack, you should pick one up, there are even reports of finding it for $7.99 a six. If you find that deal, pickup two and please let me know where you found it!

This is good stuff.

Here is what beeradvocate.com had to say about Bell’s Hopslam Ale.

Now, I’m off to the fridge for another. g’night…

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January 27, 2009’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Old Style (the new formula)

Last Friday pmayo gave me the good news that my local Jewel had the new Old Style in talls. I made a trip up there and picked up a six pack. The new OS has taken a cue from the relaunch of Schlitz, in 2008, and has gone back to being fully krausened. Krausening was a big selling point for Old Style back in the 80’s when the beer was brewed in LaCrosse. So the beer has taken a turn back to the days when I first started drinking Old Style twenty years ago.

I’m normally not real nostalgic, but when it comes to the beer…well what the fuck. So I ran up and got the sixer, got home and in the late afternoon I popped one. What came out was a smell from yesteryear, could they have actually duplicated the same smell I had become familiar with drinking Old Style back in the day it sure seemed like they had. I drank a few sips and finished off the can rather quickly. I have to say it had a nice taste and reminded me of a summers day at the ballpark. The finish was very smooth. One thing was missing though, Old Style was always a very filling beer and this new version is not. Part of me misses that, but I guess I’ll be able to drink more at the ballpark this summer (probably not a good thing). Maybe making it less filling was something they had to do to compete with all of the light beers out there today. I have no idea.

Overall I like the new beer. I don’t think it’s the old OS formula though. If you’re looking for the old OS formula you’ll have to pickup a LaCrosse Lager. I’ll keep drinking OS, it’s all about the brand. LOL.

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December 20, 2008’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Cane & Ebel

The fine folks at Two Bros. Brewing Company in Warrenville have a really nice seasonal called Cane & Ebel. This is a  red rye ale with alot of hops. This beer has a very unique taste.  I had this on draft last night at Guthries and it was really a nice beer. (As a matter of fact I had more than one.)

If you can’t find this beer on draft you can pick it up and bring it home. This beer is sold in 4-packs at local stores, and I have seen it at Trader Joes. This beer is worth a pickup for your holiday parties.

Here is what beeradvocate.com had to say about Cain & Ebel.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!

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December 3, 2008’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Bell’s Winter White Ale

With the snow on the ground, and more on the way, it seems only fitting that I choose a Winter White Ale this week. So, across Lake Michigan I go over to one of my favorite brewers Bell’s. These are the same guys who make Oberon! Bell’s Winter White Ale is a real nice wheat beer. (As I’ve mentioned before, I’m not the biggest wheat beer fan) Still this is a nice winter drink, something that you can drink by the fire during the holidays.

Here is what beeradvocate.com had to say about Bell’s Winter White Ale.

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November 25, 2008’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Point Special Lager

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone,

This week’s beer comes from a brewer up in the great state of Wisconsin that has been brewing beer since 1857. (Funny, when I went to school in Wisconsin this stuff was cheap.) They have since added a line of specialty beers and the price has went up. Not that much, it’s just not the cheap stuff anymore. Still this is an affordable beer with a good taste.

Point Special Lager is a good tasting lager beer. You can drink a ton of this stuff if you are so inclined to do so. So if you have it in your area and don’t want to take the same old beer to your Thanksgiving celebration this year, take some Point to the party.

Here is what beeradvocate.com had to say about Point.

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November 18, 2008’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Rogue American Amber Ale

After the Halloween crap I drank a few weeks back, I have been drinking beers I know I like for this thing. Hopefully, I’ll get a little more adventurous as far as trying some newer flavors in the weeks ahead. Thanks for the suggestions below and keep ‘em coming.

This weeks beer of the week comes from Rogue, one of the better known craft brewers in America. Rogue comes from Oregon.

This is my perfect ‘in-between’ beer. What I mean by that is sometimes I don’t want to go real dark and real heavy, but I don’t want to go too light and lager-y. So I need something in between.

Like most everything you get from Rogue American Amber Ale has great flavor. If you want hops, you’ve got ‘em. If you want a little bitterness in your beer you got it.

What I really like about American Amber Ale is you can get it in the 24 oz. bomber! What I don’t like about this beer is the cost. Like most everything from Rogue it ain’t cheap.

Here is what beeradvocate.com had to say about American Amber Ale from Rogue.

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November 13, 2008’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

312 Urban Wheat

First of all, I have to apologize for not updating the beer o’ the week recently. I really haven’t had too many pops lateley, with the acception being a few Coronas while I watched election returns last Tuesday. Thanks to Uncle Dave for giving me the push I needed earlier today to update this.

I’m gonna go local today. Goose Island Beer Company has been brewing great beer in Chicago since 1988. Here’s a little history on their company from their website. Their longtime home is the brewpub down off of Clybourn (which will be staying around for a while) and they also have a brew pub right by the ballpark on Clark Street. Anytime you can get any of their beers fresh at the brewpubs, I suggest doing so.

Several summers back I was over on the other side of the lake in New Buffalo, MI and I wandered into a pub/restaurant for dinner. I noticed this tap that looked like a telephone, I asked the bartender what the beer was and she said it was ‘312′ a new beer from Chicago. I tried it and boys and girls it was an instant favorite of mine. The funny part about this beer, is I used to really not like wheat beers. Goose Island has marketed this beer as an ‘Urban Wheat…densely populated with flavor’. That’s exactly what this beer is very flavorful (and flavor in a good way).  The beer is unfiltered so if you are drinking it out of a pint glass you will see it’s a bit cloudy. Enjoy the taste.

The other day I was at my Jewel and noticed that next to the big bottles of Fat Tire there were big bottles of 312. I picked one up and enjoyed it tonite. The only problem I had with it, is I wish I had bought a couple more.  312 Urban Wheat is probably my favorite beer brewed in Illinois and my favorite coming from Goose Island. Last summer I was in Detroit and they were actually serving it at Comerica Park, so distribution is getting this beer out beyond Chicago.

Here is what beeradvocate had to say about Goose Island’s 312.

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October 27, 2008’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Buffalo Bill’s Brewery Pumpkin Ale

Well, it’s Halloween week! One of the

I went down to Sam’s and picked up a few. I have to admit, I’m not a real big fan of Pumpkin Ales. I have tried a few the past few years and haven’t really found one that I was a big fan. So I’ll keep on trying. This year I got to Sam’s when it looked like most of the Pumpkin ales had been picked over. So I picked up a couple choices. Of the two, I liked Buffalo Bill’s Pumpkin Ale the best, that ain’t saying much. Here is there company website. The beer tastes like pumpkin pie. I like pumpkin pie and I like beer, but something was missing. I can’t really explain it. Anyways I always enjoy trying a couple of these ales a year. One year I may actually find one I really like. There are a bunch of Pumpkin Ales out there, it seems to be a growing seasonal beer. I’ll try a couple more next year. So Happy Halloween everyone.

Here is what beeradvocate.com had to say about Buffalo Bill’s Brewery Pumpkin Ale.

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October 20, 2008’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Harpoon IPA

This New England craft beer is a real pleasure to drink. The taste is distinctive and memorable. According to the company website:

Harpoon IPA is an interpretation of the classic English style using hops and malt grown in the United States.

That’s one hell of an interpretation fellas. Good stuff. I enjoyed drinking a few of these this afternoon while watching college football. What a beer.

Here is what beer advocate has to say about Harpoon IPA.

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September 28, 2008’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Old Style Beer

With the Cubs heading back to the playoffs, there is only one beer for me this week. In honor of my favorite team, it’s their beer. It’s no longer the original formula, but for my money I associate one beer with the Chicago National League ballclub. Old Style Beer has been served at Wrigley Field since 1950. As the story goes, Chicagoans vacationing in Wisconsin grew a fondness for G. Heileman’s beer. So Wrigley brought the product into the ballaprk, so Chicagoans could enjoy their vacation beer at the ballpark. The rest is history. They have sponsored Cubs radio broadcasts as long as I can remember.

Here is what beer advocate has to say about Old Style.

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September 21, 2008’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

LaCrosse Lager

In honor of the Cubs clinching the playoffs on Saturday, wpbc pal Vehere and I spent the pre and postgame sucking down LaCrosse Lager’s at Piano Man in Wrigleyville. LaCrosse Lager is brewed by City Brewing Company in of all places LaCrosse, WI. Yep, this is the old Old Style Brewery. This beer is same ‘pure artesian spring water’/‘fully krausened’ formula that once made Old Style the most popular beer in Chicagoland.

Here is what Beeradvocate.com has to say about LaCrosse Lager.

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September 14, 2008’s wpbc beer o’ the week is:

Dog Days Dortmunder Style Lager

brewed by Two Brothers Brewing Company in Warrenville, IL.

Here is what Beeradvocate.com has to say about Dog Days.